


Change Is Good

by Orange_Sunset_12



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Haircuts, Link makes her realize she has no reason to be, Post-Breath of the Wild, Post-Calamity Ganon, Zelda is self conscious, Zora's Domain, honestly so much fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:40:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,731
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24166741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orange_Sunset_12/pseuds/Orange_Sunset_12
Summary: When Zelda finally makes an appearance after half an hour inside his house, Link is sure King Rhoam's spirit would be scolding him profoundly for the words that leave his lips.
Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 104





	Change Is Good

The bright flame coming from the small fire Link has put up outside his house is enough to warm up the chilly air of the early day. Cooking the remnants of his hunting morning, the hero is finally allowed a moment of peace. 

It's been a little bit over than a week since the Calamity fell, that Ganon was sealed away and peace was restored once again. In between visiting Kakariko village to tell Impa their victory; making a stop at the Dueling Peaks stable to retrieve their horses and finaly reaching Hateno village, hero and Princess haven't had the time to properly sit down and enjoy the peace they so hardly fought for. 

Refocusing on the bowl in front of him, Link awaits patiently for it to do its magic and all of a sudden the air is filled with a delicious smell of a meat skewer. Happy with the result - with a very rumbling stomach - a contented smile spreads across his face easily. However, the realization that the person he's been reunited with a couple of weeks ago is still inside the house morphs the smile into a frown. 

Heaving out a overly bored sigh, Link turns his head around towards the entrance of his humble home, noting with slight distress that it is still as locked as it was five minutes ago when he last checked. Yes, he's learned and it has been proven to him countless times that Zelda is pretty capable of taking care of herself and much more, but it has been almost half an hour since she'd locked herself up inside and Link is starting to feel the urge to check on her and see if everything's alright. He tries to convince himself that she is, (that no Yiga Clan member suddenly _poofed_ inside his house and took her captive, for example) and returns his attention to the pot, one calloused hand holding his head up while crouched down.

Eventhough he hasn't fully recovered his memories from one hundred years ago, somewhere deep inside his heart he knows that Zelda is the only person he can truely be himself with. He feels within his blood the need to protect her with his whole life, as well as make sure she is safe.

However, he knows there are some paths you need to take alone, and so he realizes that if Zelda wanted some moments to herself it's because she was needing it. It still doesn't sooth him one bit though. 

The hero doesn't have to wait too much longer, for moments later he hears the distinct click of the lock on his front door unlock.

Link turns around with the sound, and once his eyes fall upon her steady figure, so strong and fierce even after every terrible event that she had to endure for so long, he has to keep himself upright with a hand on the soft grass beneath him so that he doesn't fall. 

He thinks his eyes might be betraying him, but the evidence is clear.

Zelda has cut her hair short.

"I feel somewhat lighter now, actually." Zelda quips, a smile spreading on her thin lips as she seems to take in the clean air of Hateno village as well as the beautiful landscape of the small town.

Link, however, is sure nothing else is more beautiful than the sight right in front of him.

Her blonde hair cascades down a little bit past her jaw line, and even with her usual braided crown she looks more like the person he's come to know now than the one she had been forced to be back then when the world weighted on her shoulders.

She looks brighter, freer. And he's amazed.

"I feel like I did the right thing. It was starting to weight down on me anyway and with the journey we have ahead of us it will be easier to keep up with you without it blocking my movements." Zelda continues, oblivious to the struck faced Link not too far away from her as she prepares the bags they will need for their travel to Zora's Domain. "Not to mention the fact that it will enhance my peripheral vision, as well. What do you think?"

She turns his way, and only then does Link realize that he's been staring for too long, the slight smell of almost burned meat filling his nostrils. Turning around in a swift movement, Link immediately stirs the skew, trying his best to hide the slight pinkish color that has filled his face, wishing the Princess hadn't noticed. 

Relief washes trough his body when he sees that the food isn't indeed burnt, and that they'll have something to eat, at least.

Unfortunately, his mind is running miles per hour and he can't seem to find the words to express his thoughts. He's utterly speechless.

"Link?"

Upon his silence, Zelda frowns slightly, stopping her actions to approach Link carefully. His silence was normal one hundred years ago, but the Link she's met now is way more talkative and lighthearted and she's not sure what his silence means.

Her heart beats strongly inside her chest because although she might sound silly, his opinion matters the most to her. She counts on him as the best friend she never had, and the fact that her heart beats faster when he smiles or stands by her side through every adversity is one more reason for her to believe that her feelings for Link are much more than simple friendship. They're bonded somehow - or at least she hopes they are - and everything feels oddly natural with him.

But suddenly, doubts fill her thoughts.

Maybe she shouldn't have cut it. Maybe it was too drastic and she'll regret it later on. Maybe people will think she's crazy because her hair is no longer neat nor perfect. Maybe Link will see her differently because this means she has somehow changed and he doesn't like it. When she started to care about the other's opinion, she doesn't know, but Link is different. They're in this together and he's too important for her. The part of her that thinks logically is clearly shut down at the moment.

The sudden sound of Link putting out the fire is enough to bring her out of her terrifying thoughts.

Zelda is mere steps behind him, watching as he places the plates neatly on a trunk of a tree next to him, his movements slow.

And then, he turns his gaze to her, over his shoulders, his expression as neutral as it always is - though now less than before the Calamity. She awaits patiently for him to say something, anything, and it's only when Link sees the doubt in her eyes does he snap out of his thoughts.

Zelda looks confused regarding him, watching as he slowly stands up and walks over to her with small steps. The thought of him judging her comes to her mind and suddenly words cannot stop their way out of her lips.

"I know, Link. I know this is really sudden and drastic and out of the blue and maybe I made a mistake because I'm not the flawless Princess I should be being anymore, I know!" She heaves out a desperate breath before continuing. "I just thought that I had to... something inside me was screaming for me to cut it because it just brings bad memories, to be completely honest with you, and I-"

Zelda comes to a halt upon seeing the face Link always puts up whenever he's trying to figure her out, to understand her actions, and sudenly the urge to cry is almost unbearable. But she won't cry. She's done crying for Godesses' sake.

"Oh Godesses what am I supposed to do now?" She starts pacing through the lenght of the small garden in front of the house, her mind running. "Is it really that bad? I could hide it. I could use one of your Hylian Hoods and wait until it grows back in a few months. I could-"

"Princess." Link calls, his hand stopping her incessant movements as it rests on her arm.

Zelda turns to him, eyes big and so green like the most beautiful forest he's ever been in. Link is sure he's never seen anyone so gorgeous, so godly like, that words don't have to fight their way out anymore.

"I think you look beautiful."

The words leave his mouth in a soft whisper, so soft that Zelda has to think twice about his murmur. Link seems to only realize what he's said moments later, because he sheepishly lowers his gaze to the ground in order to hide the slight blush that has just taken over his cheeks.

"Oh... r-really?"

Scratching the back of his head in embarassment, Link manages a grimace. He can already see the spirit of the King himself scolding him for being inadequate towards Zelda.

"Yeah... it really suits you." He completes in an honest tone, voice gentle, before reluctantly letting go of her arm and meeting her eyes once again.

And once he does, he's met with the most beautiful smile he's ever seen. The one he's been waiting to see ever since he woke up in the Shrine of Resurrection and the memories began to slowly come back to him. The one smile that can turn everything good again.

"It's settled then." Zelda says, expression soft as her heart allows itself to calm down. "This will be my new haircut from now on."

Link smiles, and he knows by the way her smile never leaves her face as they travel through Hyrule during that day that she made the right decision cutting it, and well... he made the right decision as well to love her no matter what adversities come their way.

There's really no need to say that Prince Sidon was completely over the moon with the soon to be Queen's new style.

But when he claimed he was the number one fan of her change in style, both Zelda and Link knew the number one fan was the one standing right besideher, eyes always alert and ears paying attention to every sound, his hand a movement's way of reaching the sword that seals the darkness because they know that is his only purpose in life.

Make sure Zelda feels like her best everyday.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! I just had to write something about Zelda cutting her hair because honestly I can't wait to see what content Nintendo will give us about these two precious smol beans.  
> Leave your thoughts if you want and I'll see you next time! <3


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